Travel Photos Home Page
Travel Photos...Toledo
To return to the 'Spain' page, please CLICK HERE
To return to the Paintings section of this website, please CLICK HERE
I made a day trip to Toledo while I was staying in Madrid. This is the Cathedral of Toledo. Unfortunately, I can't offer any views of the dark and mysterious interior because one is not allowed to take photos there.
The Alcazar of Toledo. This building was badly damaged during the Spanish Civil War as it withstood a major attack by Republican forces.
Many of the old streets twist and turn as they climb up the steep hills.
The twin towers behind the stone wall sit atop a gate called the Puerta de Bisagra Nueva. It is now the main entrance to the City of Toledo. From here, one climbs up into the Old Town.
This gate, called the Puerto del Sol, was built in the 14th Century by the Knights Hospitaller. It was constructed in the fashionable Moorish style of the day.

Toledo had been reconquered by the Christians in 1085, although it was only in 1491 that the Treaty of Granada put the final touches to the Reconquista of Spain.
The Alcantara Bridge
This is the charming cloister within the San Juan de los Reyes Monastery.
The Santa Maria la Blanca Synagogue. Wikipedia has this to say about this remarkable building:

"Santa María la Blanca (literally Saint Mary the White, originally known as the Ibn Shushan Synagogue, or commonly "The Congregational Synagogue of Toledo'") is a museum and former synagogue in Toledo, Spain. Erected in 1180, it is disputably considered the oldest synagogue building in Europe still standing. It is now owned and preserved by the Catholic Church.

Its stylistic and cultural classification is unique as it was constructed under the Christian Kingdom of Castile by Islamic architects for Jewish use. It is considered a symbol of the cooperation that existed among the three cultures that populated the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages."

[The capitals on these columns are in the distinct style of the Visigoths. Perhaps this was part of the symbolism which the Arab architect had in mind.]
This view of Toledo, with the Alcazar on the left and the Cathedral on the right, was taken from one of the twin towers of the old Jesuit Church (Iglesia de San Ildefonso).
In this photo, one has the sense of the steep hills upn which Toledo was built. This shot was also taken from the tower of the Jesuit Church.
A view from the river with the Alcazar at the top of the hill, and the Alcantara Bridge below.
For this day trip, I caught a train from Madrid to Toledo and return. Alas, I had only been in Spain for a few days and got talked into buying a ticket on the Ave super fast train by the charming young lady at the information desk.

Smart Spaniards prefer to travel on a train called the Avant. The Ave ticket costs about three times more than the one for the Avant... and the Ave arrives about 2 minutes sooner than the Avant. Buyer Beware!

Most of my day trips were by bus, which I found to be comfortable and efficient.
To return to the 'Spain' page, please CLICK HERE
To return to the Paintings section of this website, please CLICK HERE